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Atopy as a Modifier of the Relationships Between Endotoxin Exposure and Symptoms Among Laboratory Animal Workers.

ABSTRACT: Background:Exposure to endotoxin is known to trigger airway inflammation and symptoms, and atopy may modify the relationship between endotoxin exposure and symptom development. Objective:To test the a priori hypothesis that atopic status modifies the relationship between endotoxin exposure and respiratory symptom development. Methods:A prospective study of laboratory workers at The Jackson Laboratories was conducted. Allergy skin testing was performed and population demographic and clinical information was obtained at baseline. Personal exposure assessments for airborne endotoxin and surveys of self-reported symptoms were performed every 6 months. Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine the relationship between endotoxin exposure and development of mouse-associated symptoms and multivariate regression was used to test for interaction. Results:Overall, 16 (9%) of 174 worker-participants developed mouse-associated rhinoconjunctivitis symptoms by 24 months and 8 (5%) developed mouse-associated lower respiratory symptoms by 24 months. Among workers with endotoxin exposure above the median (?2.4 EU m-3), 5 (6% of 80) atopics reported mouse-associated rhinoconjunctivitis symptoms at 24 months as compared to 3 (3% of 94) non-atopics. Among workers below the median endotoxin exposure (<2.4 EU m-3), 1 (1% of 80) atopic reported mouse-associated rhinoconjunctivitis symptoms at 24 months as compared to 7 (7% of 94) non-atopics. For the combination of symptoms, the adjusted hazard ratio was 6.8 (95% confidence interval: 0.7-67.2) for atopics and 0.07 (95% confidence interval: 0.01-0.5) for non-atopics. Conclusion:In this occupational cohort, atopic workers may be more susceptible to, and non-atopic workers protected from, endotoxin-associated upper and lower respiratory symptoms.

SUBMITTER: Newton AN

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6059162 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Atopy as a Modifier of the Relationships Between Endotoxin Exposure and Symptoms Among Laboratory Animal Workers.

Newton Ashley N AN Davis Meghan M Koehler Kirsten K Shreffler Wayne W Ahluwalia Sharon S Metwali Nervana N Thorne Peter S PS Paigen Beverly J BJ Matsui Elizabeth C EC

Annals of work exposures and health 20171001 8

<h4>Background</h4>Exposure to endotoxin is known to trigger airway inflammation and symptoms, and atopy may modify the relationship between endotoxin exposure and symptom development.<h4>Objective</h4>To test the a priori hypothesis that atopic status modifies the relationship between endotoxin exposure and respiratory symptom development.<h4>Methods</h4>A prospective study of laboratory workers at The Jackson Laboratories was conducted. Allergy skin testing was performed and population demogra ...[more]

PMID: 29028247

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Project description:Dust and fumes are complex mixtures of airborne gases and fine particles present in all environments inhabited by people. This study investigated the relationship between occupational dust exposure levels and mental health problems such as depression or anxiety, fatigue, and insomnia or sleep disturbance. We analyzed data from the third and fourth Korean Working Conditions Survey (KWCS) conducted by the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency in 2011 and 2014. We performed chi-square tests to compare the different baseline and occupational characteristics and mental health status according to occupational dust exposure levels. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for mental health symptoms (fatigue, depression or anxiety, and insomnia or sleep disturbance) were calculated using adjusted multiple logistic regression models. A total of 78,512 participants (43,979 in men, 34,533 in women) were included in this study. Among them, 6,013 (7.7%) and 2,625 (3.3%) reported "moderate" and "severe" dust exposure, respectively. Among those who answered "yes" to depression or anxiety, fatigue, insomnia or sleep disturbance, 50 (4.6%), 961 (4.8%), and 123 (5.9%), respectively, demonstrated "severe" occupational dust exposure. Compared to "low" levels of dust exposure, "moderate" and "severe" exposure increased the risk of depression and anxiety (OR = 1.09, 95%CI: 0.88-1.36; OR = 1.16, 95%CI: 0.87-1.58, per exposure respectively); however, this was not statistically significant. For fatigue, significance was observed for "moderate" 1.54 (1.46-1.64) and "severe" 1.65 (1.52-1.80) exposure levels. "Severe" levels increased the risk of insomnia or sleep disturbance (OR = 1.52, 95%CI: 1.25-1.85). These results suggest that the "dust annoyance" concept of mental health, which may be explained by a neurocognitive mechanism, is plausible. Occupational "dust annoyance" has been linked to workers' mental health status, particularly in terms of fatigue and sleep disturbance; a dose-response relationship has been observed. Workers should be protected against dust to support their health and productivity.

Dataset Information

Atopy as a Modifier of the Relationships Between Endotoxin Exposure and Symptoms Among Laboratory Animal Workers.

Publications

Atopy as a Modifier of the Relationships Between Endotoxin Exposure and Symptoms Among Laboratory Animal Workers.

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